Gallery Music Eye to Eye with Butch Walker

September 7, 2011 - 7:45 am

Butch Walker was supposed to be one of the headlining artists at this year’s Sunset Junction Music Fest but due to some pesky street fines and fine print on contracts, the festival was cancelled. That didn’t stop Butch and his army of Black Widows from performing, however. “We were all dressed up and nowhere to go when they canned it,” joked Butch. The guys made the best of it, with plan B being a 30-minute set in the courtyard of their new label, Dangerbird Records. The show consisted of the band performing the entire track list off of the latest and greatest Butch Walker and the Black Widows release, The Spade. A giant crowd packed into the outdoor courtyard and even Justin Kirk (Andy Botwin on Weeds) came out for the soiree.

Prior to the performance, Butch sat down with ChinaShop to discuss the new album, embarrassing tattoos, and his distaste for synthesizer music.

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Music Katie Melua: I’d Love to Kill You

September 2, 2010 - 11:04 am

Katie Melua

If you haven’t heard of Katie Melua, you better hide that little fun fact from your British friends, as she is more than a legend in the UK.  This spunky singer-songwriter got her start when she attended the Brit School for Performing Arts where she caught the eye of the prestigious Mike Batt, composer for everyone from Art Garfunkle to Vanessa Mae.  Spellbound by her mesmerizing voice, Mike signed Katie to his label, Dramatico.  By the age of 19, Katie’s debut, Call Off The Search, sold 1.8 million copies in just 5 months.  Her follow-up, Nine Million Bicycles, went four times platinum and she instantly sprung to the status of England’s best selling female artist and Europe’s highest selling female artist.

China Shop picked the brain of this powerhouse of songwriting to see what she’s all about offstage:

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